UNDP in Moldova

Moldovan mayors have committed to fighting violence against women and girls

24 Nov 2013

Mayors joined the UN’s global initiative committing to work for violence-free communities. Photo: UN Moldova

Mayors from various communities of the Republic of Moldova have joined the UN’s global COMMIT initiative by getting together in a flash mob through which they committed to undertake actions to fight violence against women and girls in their communities.

„We are worried about the cases of violence in our communities and through today’s flash mob, we are committing ourselves to undertake concrete actions to fight this phenomena”, said Ludmila Ceaglîc, mayor of Calfa village, Anenii Noi. ”I will continue to inform women in my village, in particular the most vulnerable, about the existing legal framework to prevent and fight domestic violence and the protection orders. It is very important that women in Moldova know that they are protected by the law”.

According to a study of the National Statistics Bureau, developed with the support of the UN and Government of Sweden, 63% of women in Moldova experienced some type of violence (psychological, physical or sexual) from husband/partner during her lifetime. More than half of children aged 6-7 years are punished by physical force, while 16.4 per cent of parents beat their children who are under one year of age.

Minister of Labour, Social Protection and Family Valentina Buliga invited everyone to join the global movement to fight violence. ”The support and the active engagement in the campaign of various partners, in particular of the Congress of Local Authorities in Moldova (CALM), shows the strength of our joint efforts and represents a strong call for change of behaviours and attitudes to stop gender-based violence, in particular at the level of each community”.

“The United Nations welcomes the leadership shown by CALM to take the global campaign of the United Nations Secretary General to eradicate violence into the heart of their communities. Moldova is the first country to translate global commitments into community pledges”, said Nicola Harrington-Buhay, UN Resident Coordinator in Moldova. “We also welcome the pro-active response of the Government of the Republic of Moldova to the recommendations of the CEDAW Committee. Together with our partners, the UN family remains highly committed to continuing to promote the rights of women and girls and their empowerment in all spheres.”

The Republic of Moldova committed to end violence against women by ratifying the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) and adopting the Law on Preventing and Combating Family Violence. Reviewing Moldova’s progress in implementing the CEDAW Convention, the CEDAW Committee in October of this year welcomed a number of points of progress, including the establishment of the Council on Preventing and Combating Discrimination and Ensuring Equality in 2013, the adoption of Law No. 121 on Ensuring Equality in 2012, and Law No. 45-XVI on Preventing and Combating Family Violence in 2008. The CEDAW Committee urged attention to improving law, policy and practice in a number of areas, including by establishing emergency protection orders to be issued by police in cases of domestic violence; bringing prosecutorial guidelines on the investigation of rape into conformity with international law; and improving the regulatory framework on contraceptive sterilization of women. The Committee also recommended particular attention to the situation of vulnerable women and girls, in particular Romani women and women with disabilities. Full documentation of the CEDAW Committee’s 2013 review of Moldova is available here.

The UN Agencies in Moldova are supporting the Government in reviewing and strengthening the legal framework in the area of preventing and fighting violence, setting up services and multidisciplinary teams to assist the victims of domestic violence as well as training teachers, medical staff, police and other community members recognize the signs of violence or abuse and act on it. In Drochia, UN Agencies - UNDP, UNFPA, IOM and UN Women created a Centre for the rehabilitation of aggressors which represents an innovative approach to domestic violence. UNFPA-supported Y-Peer network works with adolescent boys and girls to address attitudes towards psychological and physical violence. An ongoing campaign supported by UNICEF promotes positive parenting and raising children without violence through awareness, video spots, public lectures, special hours and drawing competition in all schools. The UN Human Rights Office (OHCHR) worked closely this year to strengthen civil society networks of vulnerable women and girls, including Romani women, women with disabilities, LBT women, and women from the Transnistrian region of the Republic of Moldova.